Razors having a handle, and one or more blades housed in a head connected or releasably connected to the handle, are used by both men and women for personal shaving needs. The term “razor” as used herein is not limited to handles that are integrally connected to a blade head but rather is intended to include handles that are either integral with or removably attachable to the blade head. Furthermore, the term “blade head” covers integral blade heads or blade cartridges that include one or more blades and which are releasably connected to the handle to permit replacement of the cartridge. The blade sharpener of the present invention, therefore, could be used to sharpen razors having either integral blade heads or replaceable blade cartridges.
While razors are capable of providing multiple shaves, the number of uses of each razor, or blade head, is limited. The cutting edges of the individual razor blades that shear hair, are dulled by use and may become unfit for shaving after only a few uses. Most razors are not equipped with sharpeners. As a result, the razor, or the blade head, must be discarded when its useful life is reached. The life of the average razor, or blade head, is estimated to be approximately three to seven shaves. Assuming a user that shaves daily, approximately seventy razors or blade heads would need to be purchased and discarded annually. This is not only costly, but adds to the environmental burden of discarded plastic, packaging and metal.
Known devices for sharpening blades are shown, for example, in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,854,251 to Paule describes a device wherein the safety razor blade to be sharpened reciprocates between a series of honing elements.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,979,857 to Kobylarz describes a safety razor sharpener wherein an abrasive disc is hand rotated over the blade.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,322 to Butka describes a knife that can be sharpened with a hand operated movable casing.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,036,731 to Fletcher describes an apparatus used for the sharpening of a razor blade by hand operation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,139,138 to Isaksen describes a combination razor assembly for shaving and a container for sharpening the blade manually.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,785,586 to Delsignore describes a method and apparatus for sharpening a blade by polishing it in a slurry.
Other sharpening devices are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,030,281 to Cozzini, U.S. Pat. No. 6,488,834 to Francis, U.S. Pat. No. 6,506,106 to Fletcher and U.S. Design patents Des. 162,356, Des. 211,482, and Des. 446,883.
Other known devices are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,859,554; 2,098,465; 2,331,370; 2,458,257; 2,511,188; 2,565,281; and 3,057,062.
The sharpener disclosed in each of these references has one or more disadvantages. For example, the sharpening action for some of the devices must be provided manually by a user requiring effort and time to achieve the benefit of sharpening. Other known devices that are motor-driven to provide blade sharpening, rely upon an external power source. Such devices lack portability. Some of these devices, in which the external power source is that typically supplied to a household at 120 volts AC, present a potential electrical hazard when the sharpener is used in wet environments. Other known sharpening devices are directed to sharpening razor blades that are intended to be inserted by a user into a blade head. Such devices, therefore, cannot be used to sharpen the razor blades of a razor. Other known sharpening devices are included in combination with shavers, thereby adding weight to the shaver and resulting in a less ergonomic design.